Sukkas – Are You Committed?

It is surely no coincidence that the Yomim Noraim lead directly into the Yom-Tov of Sukkos. After completing the entire teshuva process, we are ready to rededicate ourselves to Hashem and the Torah. Sukkos is one of the only mitzvos we perform with our entire bodies. By entering the sukkah, we commit ourselves fully to the ratzon Hashem. This means that we don't just do the right thing when in works out for us, or when we happen to agree with it. We keep the Torah because it is the Word of Hashem, whether it is hard or easy, and whether we understand it or not.

The pasuk (Sefer Yeshaya) says, v'sukka tihiye l'tzel yoimam m'choirev ul'machse uli'mestor m'zerem u'matar. The sukkah provides shade from the heat of the day, and protects and shelters from torrents and rain. One of the gedolei Rebbes explains that the pasuk is hinting at the message of the sukkah, calling to us to observe the Torah properly. The word zerem has the numerical value of 247, while the word matar equals 249. These two numbers are one more and one less than 248, the number of all the mitzvos aseh's in the Torah. The mitzva of sukkah is meant to shield us from our tendency to tamper with the Torah, by adding or subtracting from the number of commandments. This refers to the prohibitions of ba'al tigra and ba'al to'seif, not to subtract or add from the Torah. For example, the arba minim should consist of exactly four items, not three and not five. Now, we all understand that we should not take away from the Torah, but what is wrong with making a mitzva greater and creating additional components? We all own computers, but we can be reasonably sure that sometime in the next few years we will purchase another computer, because the new versions will make current models obsolete. Yet, we still purchase computers. Why? Because those newer versions have not yet been invented, or even conceived of yet. When a cardiologist once explained this to Rav Shach, he asked him, "and what of the human heart? When will you improve on the “current model,” and render the current one obsolete?” “Never,” the doctor replied. “The human heart is perfectly designed, with no flaws. There is no room for improvement." Hashem created the world over five thousand years ago, but He knows the past, present and future. The world stands exactly as it did when He created it, without the need for any change. His creation was perfect, and so is His Torah. If a mitzvah could be improved on, it would have been given that way in the first place. The Torah is perfect, and so it never needs to be changed. We must only preserve it and pass it exactly as it is to future generations. If someone wants to subtract or add to the Torah, he is not entirely subservient to Hashem. Keeping the mitzvos properly means accepting them as they are, without needing to add our own twist. This is the message of the sukkah. We must avoid the zerem and the matar, and stick to the complete, perfect Torah with its 248 components. This unconditional commitment to the Torah demonstrates our genuine teshuva on Yom Kippur and paves the way for a return to a life of true avodas Hashem.